There exists a very substantial need for an electrical distribution system for use in areas where temporary distribution of electrical power is required. The need has been particularly acutely felt where larger outdoor systems are required. Typical examples are at construction sites, military bivouac areas, runways and helicopter landing pads.
It has been the case in the past that such systems, all of which are temporary in nature, were actually wired in the manner of permanent installations. There are disadvantages in this approach at both ends of a temporary use situation.
In planning such a set up, it is necessary to specify a very large number of individual items on a piece by piece basis. All of these components must then be wired up on site. The margin for error is clear in this situation, arising from improper connections, grounding problems and the involvement of less than highly skilled labour.
Furthermore, when certain of the components are not available when needed, or when necessary components are overlooked in specifying the installation, makeshift solutions are often proposed and utilized which are both inadequate for the required purpose and dangerous.
At the other end of the project, when the system is dismantled, many of the components will simply be discarded either because they are not properly designed for the outdoor use to which they have been put or simply because it is economically impractical to complete a dismantling job.
One specific aspect of such distribution systems has been the absence of a central distribution box which will provide for users a safe and convenient location from which to initiate or extend branches of the system. This must currently be done by skilled electricians tapping into existing lines.
Adequate grounding is always of great concern in temporary systems, particularly outdoor ones. Where a system is wired in the manner of a permanent system but with the knowledge that the system is not in fact intended to be permanent, less care will be taken in installing the system. There is thus a level of danger involved in relying on the integrity of a return ground line throughout such a system. Nonetheless, current systems rely on a three wire configuration.
Against this background a modular distribution system has been developed which substantially reduces the problems noted above. In particular, planning of a distribution system is greatly simplified, safety is improved and recoverability and reusability of the components is virtually assured.
A central feature of the system is the electrical distribution box which, again, renders straightforward and safe the central distribution of power, heretofore a major problem centre.